Tyson: Most of what I do might be classified under the auspices of "conventional" plumbing, e.g. traditional drainage and water supply systems. In these cases, what separates EcoPlumber from other plumbing businesses are each, or perhaps all of these things put together: A) Sustainable Installation Practices B) A "Mindfulness" Approach C) Provision of Resources/Information D) occasionally, the use of "greener" materials

Briefly, point A refers to quality of craftsmanship and durability of the installation, and ties in closely with point B. Essentially, I've made a commitment to use materials and approaches that, to the best of my understanding, will provide long-lasting and high quality service to the end user(s) into perpetuity. In short: "Placing quality above profit."

Under the guise ofPoint C, I use my position as a service/trade professional as an opportunity to advocate for conservation and environmentally friendly practices. This may entail, for instance, informing a home owner as to what "gray water" is, how it's used, possibilities for use in their own home, or perhaps suggesting that an individual contact Energy Trust of Oregon to receive free low flow aerators and shower-heads.

Regarding D, I offer a type of plastic pipe for domestic water plumbing that is 100% recyclable, 100% safe (DOC/VOC free) called Aquatherm. I also consider it to be the most durable pipe or piping system available. It is a polypropylene product, as opposed to the much more common polyethylene (PEX) products. However, demand is low in my experience due to cost concerns... the relative rarity of Aquatherm in the local supply market and a more time-consuming installation process makes for about 1.5:1 ratio on materials and labor costs to the more standard PEX. Finally, a smaller percentage of my work is actually installs of green technology, e.g. grey-water or rainwater tanks/systems. On these, I estimate many more jobs than I actually do... It's hard to make the numbers pencil out on anything other than say, replacement of old toilets with low-flow or conversion to dual-flush. Dual flush toilets pay back quickly, about 5 years or less, whereas most rainwater/grey-water installs are over 20 years for payback of investment.

So, this pushes these sorts of technologies into, more-or-less, the realm of voluntary expenditure and/or pioneering. Better regional market supply and government subsidies would help. Also, loosening of the plumbing/building codes, which are overly restrictive, expensive, and are based on a philosophy that assumes the end-user has no capacity or desire to maintain or be responsible for a system. When, in fact, the biggest improvements in conservation are not in equipment installs, but in social and behavioral changes around the use of water, and, moreover, the desire of consumers to take full responsibility for their use of water and other resources.A: In what ways does the water crisis impact your job?T: The water crisis causes an increase water rates, which, slowly but surely, increases the demand for water conservation techniques and devices, and so creates new technology, and also helps to make that technology more available. Further, it generally raises the level of awareness around need for a new approach to water use in the "First World" countries. In an interesting corollary effect, the water problem steamrolls on in to the energy crisis/problem, highlighting the large amounts of energy consumption required to move, filter, and treat water and sewage. For many municipalities, this is their largest energy use and perhaps often most egregious form of energy waste.A: What can community members do to incorporate sustainability into their lives?T:The three best things that community members can do are: get informed, care, and spread the word. As with most of the big issues facing our 21st century civilization, knowledge about the problem, as well as the dissemination and understanding of that knowledge, is the key to progress towards solutions. If individuals can hear the truth, have the guts and wherewithal to acknowledge it as such, and have the foresight to pass it on to peers, neighbors, and colleagues, then long-term, systemic change will begin to occur. Other ways of supporting this change in the present are to be an informed consumer, that is, deliberate about the businesses one supports and their relationship to water/energy conservation and the community, and to be an informed user, e.g. deliberate and conscious about your personal use of water, and taking steps to change your eating, drinking, washing, flushing habits.